Security guard accused of killing colleague in Mount Vernon

MOUNT VERNON – A 32-year-old security company worker was accused Monday of fatally shooting a guard he supervised at Levister Towers after the victim made comments about his boss's size and weight, police said.

Dontan Jenkins of Mount Vernon shot his 47-year-old colleague multiple times as the victim was stationed inside a glass-enclosed booth, Police Commissioner Terrance Raynor said.

Police responded to the lobby of the low-income housing complex at 241 S. Ninth Ave. around 3:45 a.m. Monday in response to reports of "multiple gunshots" fired and found a security guard mortally wounded, Raynor said.

Jenkins and the unarmed victim, a Bronx man whose name was not released pending notification of his family, had an argument during a shift they worked together Sunday, Raynor said. Jenkins returned as the victim was working a double shift, approached his booth and shot him, he said.

Jenkins, who has a criminal record, was arrested after being interviewed at police headquarters, where he admitted to the shooting, the commissioner said. He was charged with second-degree murder and is to be arraigned Tuesday. A weapons-possession charge is also expected to be added.

The suspect has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in a drug case and also had an assault charge reduced.

Mayor Ernest Davis earlier called the shooting "an isolated incident."

"It's personal, it's one of those things that can happen anywhere," Davis said.

Video footage from security cameras and interviews done by investigators helped police in the case. Police also recovered a weapon and are running ballistics tests on it. They are trying to determine who owns the gun.

The area, and the five-building complex, have seen their share of violence. Mount Vernon police have a satellite precinct two blocks away but it was not staffed at the time of the shooting.

There is a security camera in the lobby. A sign says the building is patrolled by Nature's Finest Security. A woman who answered the phone at the Brooklyn-based company declined comment.

A security booth at the building was not staffed late Monday afternoon. Security guards working at the apartment complex are not armed, Raynor said.

"I don't feel safe," said a resident, Cindy Parker. "This is a dangerous situation and I'm trying to get out of here now. If they can shoot a security guard, how am I supposed to feel safe while sleeping at night?"

In May, former Mount Vernon basketball standout Isaiah Cousins was shot in the shoulder near Levister Towers when police said an errant bullet from one of two warring street gangs struck him in the back of the shoulder.

In 2007, a security guard at the Oakwood Gardens Apartments on East Lincoln Avenue in Mount Vernon was killed when he tried to confront a group of teens throwing eggs at cars on Halloween. A 19-year-old was convicted of coming up behind him and shooting him in the head and chest.

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